Review: The Sixth Victim by Tessa Harris

The Sixth Victim by Tessa Harris, May 2017, 304 pages, Kensington Publishing, ISBN: 1496706544

Reviewed by Terry Halligan.
(Read more of Terry's reviews for Euro Crime here.)

London's East End, 1888: When darkness falls, terror begins...

The foggy streets of London's Whitechapel district have become a nocturnal hunting ground for Jack the Ripper, and no woman is safe. Flower girl Constance Piper is not immune to dread, but she is more preoccupied with her own strange experiences of late.

Clairvoyants seem to be everywhere these days. Constance's mother has found comfort in contacting her late father in a seance. But are such powers real? And could Constance really be possessed of second sight? She longs for the wise counsel of her mentor and champion of the poor, Emily Tindall, but the kind missionary has gone missing.

Following the latest grisly discovery, Constance is contacted by a high-born lady of means who fears the victim may be her missing sister. She implores Constance to use her clairvoyance to help solve the crime, which the press is calling "the Whitechapel Mystery," attributing the murder to the Ripper.

As Constance becomes embroiled in intrigue far more sinister than she could have imagined, assistance comes in a startling manner that profoundly challenges her assumptions about the nature of reality. She'll need all the help she can get--because there may be more than one depraved killer out there...

In 2012, I had the good fortune to read for review one of the author's previous books THE ANATOMIST’S APPRENTICE an historical thriller set in 1780 which was about Dr Thomas Silkstone, an American surgeon from Philadelphia, who brings his skills from the US colonies to London. This was the first in a series of six books about Silkstone.

So having an appreciation of her enormous skill as a novelist I was very pleased to read her latest book which is also set in London and is the start of a new series, featuring Constance Piper.

The author has written another highly readable story which has an element of fantasy to entertain the reader and which makes it even more exciting. This was a story which I could not put down until the final conclusion. The author has done considerable detailed research to create a very believable impression of London of 1888, and I was very impressed with this but of course I remember her talent from previous books.

I found the story immensely gripping and fast moving and the pages just shot by in this extremely atmospheric story. Very strongly recommended.

Terry Halligan, July 2017

New Reviews: Connolly & Burke, Craig, Fowler, Harris, Kinnings, McGowan, Meyer, Robertson, Sinclair

Here are 9 new reviews which have been added to the Euro Crime website today:

Rich Westwood reviews Books to Die For edited by John Connolly and Declan Burke, a collection of 120 essays from well-known authors about the books they love;

Geoff Jones reviews James Craig's third DI Carlyle book, Buckingham Palace Blues;

Mark Bailey reviews Christopher Fowler's Bryant and May and The Invisible Code, the tenth (and possibly last?) in the series;

Terry Halligan reviews Tessa Harris's debut novel, The Anatomist's Apprentice set in 1780 and introducing Dr Thomas Silkstone;

Lynn Harvey reviews Max Kinnings' Baptism the first in a series featuring blind hostage negotiator Ed Mallory, and set in the London Underground;

Susan White reviews Claire McGowan's The Fall, now out in paperback;

Maxine Clarke reviews Deon Meyer's [fabulous] 7 Days, tr. K L Seegers which sees the return of Benny Griessel. Check the blog later this week for an interview with Deon Meyer;

Amanda Gillies reviews Imogen Robertson's Island of Bones the third in the Gabriel Crowther and Harriet Westerman series, out in paperback, and also set in the 1780s

and JF reviews John Gordon Sinclair's debut Seventy Times Seven.

Previous reviews can be found in the review archive.

Forthcoming titles can be found by author or date or by category, here along with releases by year.

Win: The Anatomist's Apprentice by Tessa Harris

Thanks to the generosity of the author, Tessa Harris, Euro Crime has five copies of The Anatomist's Apprentice to giveaway.

To enter the draw, just answer the question and include your details in the form below.

This competition is open to UK residents only and will close on 31 May 2012.
Only 1 entry per person/per household please.
(All entries will be deleted once the winners have been notified.)

The death of Sir Edward Crick has unleashed a torrent of gossip through the seedy taverns and elegant ballrooms of Oxfordshire. No one mourns the dissolute young man - except his sister, the beautiful Lady Lydia Farrell. When her husband comes under suspicion of murder, she seeks expert help from Dr. Thomas Silkstone, a young anatomist from Philadelphia. Thomas arrived in England to study under its foremost surgeon, where his unconventional methods only add to his outsider status. Against his better judgement he agrees to examine Sir Edward's body. But the deeper the doctor's investigations go, the greater the risk that he will be consigned to the ranks of the corpses he studies.